How to Pay Yourself as Small Business Owner

It might be confusing, but it’s important to know how to pay yourself as a small business owner. There are smarter ways that will make sure you earn a reliable paycheck.

Are you paying yourself correctly?  When you first started your business, you may have been so busy focusing on the first sale that you probably didn’t think about how much money you needed the business to make to support your current standard of living.

If you’ve been afraid to pay yourself and are looking for the best and consistent way for your small business to pay you, keep reading to learn the two methods of paying yourself from the business and how often you should pay yourself.

Business owner counting out cash to pay himself

Draws Or Distributions – How To Pay Yourself

Depending on your business legal entity, it can be called a draw or distribution when the business pays you.

A draw is when you basically take money directly out of the business checking account whenever you have money come in. Think of the term withdraw and you’ll be able to remember what this means.

A distribution is basically like a typical paycheck. It’s when the business distributes money to the shareholders/owners (you).

A draw or distribution feels hard to do when the business is just starting or when the business experiences a slow month for sales.  If you don’t have a clear, repeatable plan for how to pay yourself from the business, it’s easy to make the mistake of commingling your business and personal finances or create more administrative headaches come tax time due to inconsistent draws and distributions.

How Do You Currently Pay Yourself From Your Small Business

There are lots of common or popular answers to this question. Which one most closely matches how you pay yourself?

  • A.  I don’t.  My business isn’t making enough money yet.
  • B.  I withdraw money from the ATM whenever I need cash.
  • C.  I use my business credit card to pay for personal expenses when I see there is enough money.
  • D.  Both B & C
  • E.  I write myself a check from the business account and deposit it into my personal checking account.  (Or I do an online transfer between accounts.)

Financially, the smartest way to pay yourself is the last one. Writing yourself a check from the business account or transferring electronically is the best answer. It keeps your books balanced and protects you at tax time.

Best Ways to Pay Yourself from Small Business

There are two options in figuring out how and how much to pay yourself from your small business.  Decide upfront which option is best for you, and minimize inconsistencies that can add to administrative headaches and IRS issues.

Option 1:  Set Amount

With this option, you will choose a consistent amount that you will pay yourself each month (i.e. $2,000 per month) and/or each paycheck (i.e. $500 per paycheck) and frequency (i.e. once a month, twice a month, or every week).

If you’re not sure what amount to select, the first step is to create a personal budget and determine how much income you need to earn to pay your personal bills. Then, evaluate if the business can support this draw or distribution.

Option 2:  Percentage of Profits

If you have other sources of income or you’re worried about the business’ fluctuating income, you can choose to pay yourself a percentage of each month’s profits. Another way to look at it is that you’re paying yourself on a 100% commission.

By choosing this option, you pay yourself based on a pre-determined percentage (i.e. 25%) of each month’s profits.  You will only pay yourself after month-end when you’ve calculated your total sales, cost of goods sold, total expenses, and net profit.

How Often Should You Pay Yourself

calendar with a yellow sticky note that says "pay day"

This is a question I get asked a lot. The answer really depends on your business’s budget. Contact me if you’d like some professional advice.

Here are the most common payment frequencies.

Twice A Month

If you selected to pay yourself a set amount per month (Option 1), I recommend paying yourself twice a month.

Tip:  I like the 7th and 21st of the month.  Since many of us have big bills like a personal mortgage due on the 1st of the month, picking a payday like the 21st of the month gives you plenty of time for the business to write a paycheck, deposit the check into your personal checking account, and set up payment to arrive on time for those personal bills due on the 1st of the month.

Once A Month

If you are paying yourself a set % based on the business profits (Option 2), I recommend only paying yourself once a month.

Tip:  I prefer paydays on the 7th of the month.  Picking this date will allow you time to close the prior month’s books, calculate your draw or distribution amount, and write yourself a check.

How to Pay Yourself from Your Small Business

There are three ways to pay yourself from your small business:

  1. Write yourself a check from your business checking account.
  2. Set up an online draft from the business checking account to your personal checking account.
  3. Create a new payee via online banking for yourself and have the business send you payments.

Remember to add details in the check memo area to indicate this was your pay. When you do that, you’ll have a clean paper or digital trail showing that money was taken out of the business in the form of a draw or distribution.  By doing this, if you are ever audited or your CPA wants to re-calculate the numbers, you can easily review the bank statements of cleared checks and refer to the memos in online drafts for verification.

Do Not Use A Business Credit Card to Pay Yourself

Please note that nowhere in the steps above states that you can use your business credit card as a “payday” method of the business paying you.  Do not purchase personal items on your business credit card as a way to pay yourself from the business!

I had a client do this prior to working with me because she was afraid to pay herself a consistent paycheck from her seasonal business.  Big mistake!  By using her business credit card for both personal and business items, she had commingled funds, which can lead to accounting and audit nightmares.  Furthermore, it can lead to legal protection implications due to “piercing the corporate veil” and the LLC protection may no longer apply.

Small Business Owners: Pay Yourself Correctly

Business owner counting out money for his paycheck

If you want less time commitment, picking a set amount to pay yourself is the easier method.  You can set up automatic payments from your business bank account and “forget it.”  However, you’ll need to make sure your business generates enough income to support your paycheck.

On the other hand, if you need more flexibility because your business is seasonal or you’re not sure if the business can support a consistent payday amount, give yourself a percentage of each month’s profits. Whichever option you select, create the habit and don’t skip paydays or get behind on calculating your net profit for the month.  When it comes time for your CPA to do taxes or if you’re ever audited by the IRS, it will be easier to spot the owner’s draw and distribution amounts and not accidentally claim those as business deductions.

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